


Of Mirrors and Madness

by VioletShade4



Series: Four Swords Manga Retelling [3]
Category: The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Blood and Injury, Emotional Hurt, Vio is hurt, and shadow is confused, magic mirrors suck
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-30
Updated: 2019-06-30
Packaged: 2020-05-31 11:54:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,747
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19425469
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VioletShade4/pseuds/VioletShade4
Summary: Vio goes to break the Mirror of Darkness and finds more than he bargained for





	Of Mirrors and Madness

be careful who you turn your back on

Vio made his way silently down the stairs to the mirror chamber. Shadow was sound asleep, and hopefully, he would stay that way until Vio could get back to his room. This was his best chance at breaking the mirror without getting caught.  
At the bottom of the stairs, all the guards lay about in an alcoholic stupor from the party. He slowly weaved his way between the passed out guards. Suddenly a weight landed on his foot, he froze and looked down to see a Hinox snoring on his foot. Holding his breath he slowly wiggled his foot free. The Hinox muttered in his sleep but didn't wake up. Vio took a slow breath and tiptoed to the door.

Opening it slowly, he thanked the goddesses for well-oiled hinges. As he closed it behind him he took a deep breath and leaned on the cool door frame to rest for a moment. The mirror chamber was pitch black, all of the torches having been extinguished hours before. Vio felt a chill sinking into his bones, he must be more tired than he thought. Turning from the door he noticed it didn't have a lock and he scanned the room for anything he could use to secure the entrance in case the shattering glass woke the guards. Not much there, one empty bookcase and some chairs were thrown in the corner but apart from that only the dark mirror dominated the space. He sighed it would have to do. 

Skirting the purview of the mirror he began moving the spare furniture in front of the door to barricade it. He shivered involuntarily as beads of sweat ran down his spine, it wasn't overly warm in the room, one might even say cold if they couldn't hear the soft gurgle of magma outside. But regardless it was colder than the rest of the temple, he felt as if eyes were burning into the back of his neck as he finished barricading the door, But he was definitely alone in the dark. He shivered again. I'm just chilly, he thought to himself, no one here, nothing to be afraid of. but a voice in the back of his mind reminded him you shouldn't be cold. He thought as the hairs on the back of his neck refused to relax. As he glanced around the room again. 

The moonlight began filtering in through the high slotted windows forming a circle of light around the mirror. But not a mote of it struck it and the mirror itself remained shrouded in darkness. He shivered as the darkness enveloped him. No time like the present Vio thought taking a steadying breath, the faster I break the damn thing the sooner I can get out of here and back to shadow! With that thought, he shrugged his shoulders in a vain attempt to dislodge the blanket of darkness that had fallen on his shoulders and strode towards the mirror…  
There was deafening silence as Vio hefted his sword and swung it at the obsidian surface of the mirror. The Sword stopped a millimeter from the glassy surface.  
“Green!” Shadow whispered as the Sword clattered to the ground. On the other side of the glass, Green lay in the sand exactly as Vio had last seen him. But everything was wrong! His crippled body convulsed, and blood splattered onto the sand.  
“No, no, no, NO!” Vio cried, slamming his palms against the glass. “He’s fine… It's a lie, all a lie…” Vio muttered to himself.. Vio reached down to grab the Sword, and the image in the mirror shifted to Red and Blue in the temple of darkness, struggling against the Big Poe… Blue charged, again and again, bleeding and weak until the Poe finally swallowed the struggling hero whole. All the while, Red cowered in the corner.  
“NO!” Vio growled gripping his sword with white knuckles. “They’re fine, they made it out!” The mirror rippled again, showing when Vio had trapped them in the temple with a smile.  
“You betrayed your friends,” a voice boomed in Vio’s head. He collapsed on the ground, clutching his ears. “You betrayed your brother.” The image once again showing Greens blood-soaked form lying still in the sand.  
“NO!” Vio cried, “He's fine, he's fine, he's fine... Stop FUCKING WITH ME!” He screamed, grabbing the sword and throwing his entire weight behind its hilt and lunging at the mirror. The sword stopped a fraction away from the mirrors obsidian surface as amethyst eyes met crimson. The sword clattered loudly against the flagstones.  
“What? Aren't you going to pick that up?” Shadow said nonchalantly. Vio stood frozen staring into his crimson eyes.  
“What are you doing here?” He whispered.  
“Just out for a midnight stroll,” he said,  
“Ok…” Vio said shifting his weight slightly something was off… he couldn't feel any warmth from this shadow...  
“Besides I thought I should be here when betraying me, makes it so much more tragic” a wolfish grin spreading across his face.  
Vio raised his sword pointing it at shadows chest,  
“What you gonna do with that little hero?” Shadow said with mock surprise “Gonna stab me like your brother?”  
You're not real...” Vio said as his hand shook  
“Maybe I'm not,” he studied his nails “but your sins are,” Mirror Shadow looked up and grinned, “Besides...” He shrugged, strolling over to lean on the other side of the frame. “I made your dear, lovely Shadow.” He toyed with the laces of the black tunic as he posed against the frame. “I know him better than anyone.” he strolled across the mirror again. “He loves you, and you’re betraying him,” “what a pair you make your his only friend and he's your last friend left in this world cause YOU KILLED everyone else.”  
“NO!” Vio screamed, punching the glass.  
Snap  
He immediately crumpled on the ground.  
The mirror Shadow laughed maniacally.  
“Awwww! You think you can hurt me? Poor baby hero doesn't even have the strength to break an itty bitty mirror?” He taunted. “Your dear, sweet prince warned you! You should never have come here.  
Vio didn't move, he looked like a disappointing piece of parchment thrown away and abandoned in the corner of a room  
“ Oh! What's this I hear? Is it your boyfriend? Yep! I think that's him now.”  
The mirror Shadow grinned evilly as the heavy presence faded from Vio’s mind. He hadn't realized how much it had been distorting his senses until it was gone. Without it, he could hear the pounding of the guards against the barricaded door. It took all of Vio’s willpower to even stay conscious as the pounding increased… and now he could hear shouting as well even as the world became hazy.  
The mirror shadow giggled. “What's your brilliant plan now little hero?? Aren't you supposed to be the smart one?”  
Smart one… think I need to think… Vio thought in a daze, his thoughts slipping away, people coming not good have to get away…  
“Awww” mirror shadow cooed “did I tire you out?”  
Suddenly, the door exploded, sending shards of wood and chunks of the furniture barricade flying. The Mirror shadow waved jauntily as the mirror faded to black again.  
“Search the room!” A familiar voice commanded, as the light from the corridor flooded the room. “We need to know what's going on.” The footsteps and commands stopped abruptly.  
“Vio!” Shadow cried. Immediately, he was by Vio’s side, cradling him in his arms. “What happened?! What are you doing here! I warned you it was dangerous!”  
Vio winced. “Sorry” he muttered, hissing quietly when Shadow inadvertently jostled his injured wrist.  
“What? … oh Vio! What did you do?” He gently moved the injured joint and Vio cried out “It’s definitely broken,” Shadow muttered, “I’m so sorry, Vi this is gonna sting.” He placed his hand delicately on top of Vio’s wrist and the hero whimpered in pain as sparks of magic seeped into the injured joint. Vio nearly collapsed again as the broken wrist snapped back into its proper place the magic having completed its work. “Can you walk?” Shadow asked as he supported Vio’s slender frame. Once Shadow got him upright, Vio collapsed again.  
“Sir,” a guard finally interrupted as Shadow swept Vio into his arms.  
“Can’t you see I'm busy?” Shadow hissed, not taking his eyes off his injured hero.  
“Sir, you need to see this,” the guard said dispassionately.  
“What is it?!” Shadow asked, his eyes glowing in frustration as he looked up from the limp Hero into his arms.  
“We found this by the mirror,” the guard said, holding an all too familiar sword. He held it flat across his palms presenting it to his superior for inspection.  
Shadow froze as his world shattered around him. His limp arms spilling Vio onto the cold floor. Vio whimpered but was in no state to protest further. Shadow didn’t even seem to notice.  
“No… no, it can’t be” he muttered, walking in a daze towards the mirror. He gently stroked its surface, leaning his forehead against it for support. It seemed to ripple at his touch enveloping the tips of his fingers. “Show me” shadow said placing his whole hand into the mirror surface. The viscous glass rippled out from his hand resolving into Vio slamming his sword hilt into Green. Shadow fell to his knees as though he had been the one struck, his hand slid down the mirror to hang listlessly at his side as the mirrors showed scenes from the last day in rapid succession, green waking up and leaving with blue and red, Vio sneaking out of his bedroom, Vio entering and barricading the room. Shadow stiffened, every muscle taut. Vio throwing the sword with all his might towards the mirror, Shadow reeled back as if he himself had been struck by the blow. Green and the other heroes approaching the temple…  
“TRAITOR!” he screamed, whirling from the mirror “GET THIS TRAITOROUS BASTARD OUT OF MY SIGHT!” he screamed.  
“Shadow, wait,” Vio muttered weakly half conscious, but he managed to whisper, “I'm sorry.”  
“Shut UP!” Shadow yelled charging at Vio and knocking him out with the hilt of the sword  
“Take him away” he spat turning away. The guards obeyed, immediately dragging Vio upright as Shadow watched in silent fury. Shadow waited until the guards were out of view before running up the stairs tears streaming down his cheeks.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!  
> I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments!  
> ~Violet


End file.
